Griffithsin is a potent anti-viral protein with activity against HIV and other viruses (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,884,178, 8,008,729, and 8,394,764; Mori et al., J. Biol. Chem., 280: 9345-9353 (2005); Ziolkowska et al., Structure, 14: 1127-35 (2006); O'Keefe et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. (USA), 106: 6099-104 (2009); O'Keefe et al., J. Virol. 84: 2511-21 (2010); and Moulaei et al., Structure, 18: 1104-15 (2010)).
The need remains for additional griffithsin compounds with improved properties.